Delhi High Court directs trial court to defer hearing of Medha Patkar defamation case against VK Saxena

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday directed the trial court to defer final hearings in a 2001 defamation case instituted by social activist Medha Patkar against Lieutenant Governor of Delhi Vinai Kumar Saxena over his comments on the Narmada Bachao Andolan [Medha Patkar v. V K Saxena]..Justice Shalinder Kaur directed the trial court to defer the hearing to a date after the next hearing before the High Court on May 20. .Justice Kaur noted that the trial court has listed the matter for final arguments on April 19..The defamation case arises from certain comments made by Saxena in an advertisement published with respect to the Narmada Bachao Andolan and Patkar. In her petition before the High Court, Patkar challenged a March 18, 2025 trial court order dismissing her application seeking permission to examine an additional witness who was not mentioned in the list of witnesses..Advocate Abhimanue Shrestha, appearing on behalf of Patkar, stated that the prayer seeking stay on the trial court proceedings or for permission to examine the witness is subject to the outcome of the proceedings in this petition. Counsel appearing for Saxena opposed the petition, stating that the matter has been pending at the stage of prosecution witness examination for 14 years and that this opportunity for examining witnesses has already been availed..In July last year, a magistrate court had sentenced Patkar to five months in jail and a ₹10 lakh fine for defaming Saxena.Saxena, who was the President of an organisation called National Council of Civil Liberties, had in 2000 published an advertisement against Patkar's Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), the movement that opposed the construction of dams over the Narmada river. The advertisement was titled ‘True face of Ms. Medha Patkar and her Narmada Bachao Andolan’.Following the publication of the advertisement, Patkar issued a press notice against Saxena. The press note titled ‘True Facts of a Patriot – Response to an Advertisement’ alleged that Saxena himself had visited Malegaon, praised the Narmada Bachao Andolan and paid ₹40,000 for the same. It also said that the cheque, which came from Lalbhai Group, had bounced.The reporting of the press note led Saxena to file a defamation suit against Patkar before a court in Ahmedabad in 2001.However, earlier this month, the Saket Court had ruled that Patkar will not spend time in jail, stating that she was a notable social activist who has received multiple awards for her work and the offence committed by her is not so grave to warrant her imprisonment..[Read live proceedings].Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.